Bureaucracy becomes an obstacle to vaccination of children in Salvador

It was past 3 pm this Thursday (20) when the autonomous Elisângela Barbosa, 38, arrived at the UBS (basic health unit) in Pernambués, on the outskirts of Salvador. She took her daughter Luciele Vitória, 11, to be vaccinated when she was informed that, in addition to the originals, she would have to deliver copies of the documents.

The problem is that the mother did not have in her hands the copies required by the city of Salvador for the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 years against Covid-19.

The bureaucracy that includes copies of documents and forms has become an obstacle to childhood immunization against coronavirus in the Bahian capital, which started last Monday (17).

These requirements are not usually adopted for childhood vaccination against other diseases. Even in the campaign against Covid this is not the standard: other capitals such as Rio de Janeiro, Recife, Porto Alegre and Belo Horizonte do not require copies of documents.

In a meeting held last week, the Bahia Bipartite Intermanagement Commission defined that it would not require the authorization term, recommended by the Ministry of Health, for the vaccination of children aged 5 to 11 years, when the child is accompanied by the father, mother or legal guardian. .

“It will only be necessary a mechanism of proof, a document, for which it is responsible”, explained at the time the Secretary of Health, Tereza Paim. In the absence of parents or guardians, vaccination must be authorized with written consent.

After requiring copies of documents in order to vaccinate her daughter in Salvador, Elisângela Barbosa hurried to organize the paperwork. She needed to obtain copies of her and her daughter’s identities, in addition to the child’s vaccination card and SUS (Unified Health System) card.

For her, so that other parents do not go through this setback, the municipal administration needs to better disclose which documents are required.

“Actually, I was taken by surprise. I brought all the documents, but I didn’t notice that it was necessary to present the copies, as it never happened the other times”, he said. “It’s something that needs to be publicized in other media, because not everyone uses or has access to the internet,” he added.

The complaint is repeated in other family health units, according to officials interviewed by the leaf in other locations on the outskirts of the Bahian capital, such as Via Regional and Boca do Rio, which registered low demand for children this Thursday.

Like Elisângela, artisan Lucileide da Silva, 27, also complains about the bureaucracy for vaccinating her daughter Gabriele Carvalho, 10. The mother said she had to go to the health center in Pernambués twice to vaccinate the girl.

“I brought all the documents, as usual, in relation to the other vaccines, but I had to provide copies”, he informed. “It’s a good thing that, across the street, there was an establishment that offered the service, but not everyone can have the same luck or money”, he said.

Oblivious to the embarrassment experienced by her mother, little Gabriele says she counts the days to see her schoolmates again after almost two years.

“We, children, were last in the vaccination. I hope that the parents of my colleagues take them to vaccinate too”, he said.

In addition to the original documents and copies required by the city hall, for children with comorbidities or permanent disabilities, the Municipal Health Department informs that it is also necessary to bring a medical report attesting to the health condition.

For the president of Sindsaúde (Sindicato dos Trabalhadores em Saúde da Bahia), Ivanilda Brito, the requirement of copies of documents in the vaccination against Covid-19 creates an additional obstacle among parents – some of whom would already have a certain resistance to immunization, second evaluates.

“There has already been this whole soap opera around the release of vaccination for children. Now requiring copies of documents, something that does not occur in relation to other diseases, may be the missing reason for parents to stop immunizing their children”, says the leader.

According to the municipal undersecretary of health, Decio Martins, exceptional cases related to the lack of presentation of complete documentation will be treated individually at the vaccination site, as directed by the folder to the servers.

“The idea is not to create obstacles, but to carry out greater control so that fraud is avoided, as in the various cases that occurred during the pandemic”, he assures. “We advise our team to register photos of the documents of those who are unable to take a copy,” he added.

Faced with the parents’ questioning about what will be done with the copies, the undersecretary ensures that the municipality will follow the determinations of the General Data Protection Law. “These documents will not be disclosed, even because we already have the data in the register made over the internet”, he says.

This Friday (21), Mayor Bruno Reis (DEM) announced the start of vaccination of children with Coronavac from this Saturday (22).

He also said that proof of vaccination will not be required from students when returning to school, scheduled for February 3rd. According to the head of the municipal executive, the objective is “not to make it difficult”.

“With regard to the children in our network, I will not oblige the father or mother who did not want to vaccinate the 5-year-old child to do so in order to have access to education,” he said. “I don’t want to make it difficult to return to classes, which have been suspended for two years, a huge loss for students.”

The mayor also called for an exclusive vaccination day for children, this Saturday (22), in the Bahian capital, given the low demand so far.

“We appeal to parents to take their children, so that there is a safer return to school”, says Reis.​